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Kainchi Dham

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Kainchi Dham
कैंची धाम
Kainchi Dham complex
Religion
AffiliationHinduism
District Nainital district
DeityNeem Karoli Baba, Hanuman, Vaishno Devi
FestivalsKainchi Dham Mela or Pratishtha Diwas (Foundation Day, 15 June) [1]
Location
StateUttarakhand
CountryIndia
Map
Interactive map of Kainchi Dham
Coordinates29°25′21″N 79°30′45″E / 29.42254742°N 79.5124504°E / 29.42254742; 79.5124504
Architecture
TypeHindu temple architecture

Kainchi Dham, also known as Neem Karori Ashram, is a Hindu ashram and temple complex located at Kainchi in the Nainital district, Kumaon region of Uttarakhand, India. It is closely associated with the Hindu saint Neem Karoli Baba, also known as Neeb Karori Baba.[2][3][4][5] It is situated on the banks of small mountain river, Shipra,[6] at a distance of 9 km from Bhowali and 17 km from Nainital, on the Nainital–Almora Road.[7]

The ashram was established by Neem Karoli Baba in 1964 on land donated by a local resident, Purnanand.[2] The complex includes a temple dedicated to Hanuman, which was consecrated on 15 June 1964, and Kainchi subsequently became the principal ashram of Neem Karoli Baba, in his later years.[6] Today, it continues to attract a large number of pilgrims from India and abroad. Its international recognition developed 1960s and 70s, partly through Western disciples of Neem Karoli Baba, including Ram Dass, Krishna Das and Larry Brilliant, and later through widely reported visits by Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg.[6] In 2020s, Kainchi Dham saw a rise in number of visitors, from around 800,000 annually in previous years, it rose to 2.4 million in 2024.[8][9]Visitor numbers at Kainchi Dham increased substantially during the 2020s. In June 2025, the Uttarakhand government stated that approximately 2.4 million devotees had visited the shrine during the preceding year, compared with an average of around 800,000 in earlier years.[10][11]

Etymology

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Statue of Neem Karoli Baba at Kainchi Dham

Its name, "Kainchi," which translates to "scissors" in Hindi, is derived from the two sharp hairpin bends in the mountainous road leading to the site, forming a scissor-like shape.[12][13][14][15]

Each year on 15 June a large mela (fair) known as Kainchi Dham Mela is organised to commemorate the foundation day of the temple in 1964. In this fair, thousands of devotees and pilgrims take part.[2][16]

History

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In 1962, Neem Karoli Baba and Poornanand, a resident of Kainchi village, selected a forested site associated with earlier ascetics, including Sombari Baba, who had performed yajnas there.[17] Permission was obtained to clear the site, and a raised platform (chabutara) was constructed on land leased from the Forest Department.[18] An life-size idol of Hanuman was installed on 15 June 1964, and the ashram opened in June that year.[19][18] The date subsequently became the annual foundation or pratishtha day of Kainchi Dham.[19] Over the next decade, the complex developed progressively rather than as a single building project, and additional images of Lakshmi Narayan, Parvati, Ganesha, Kartikeya and Vindhyavasini Devi were installed, together with a Shiva linga.[17]

Neem Karoli Baba's association with Western spiritual seekers during the 1960s and 1970s contributed to the later international recognition of Kainchi Dham. Among his best-known Western disciples was American psychologist Richard Alpert, who travelled to India in 1967, met Neem Karoli Baba, and was later given the name 'Ram Dass'.[20]

Following the death of Neem Karoli Baba in September 1973, his ashes were installed at Kainchi Dham and a temple, [21] where his life-size statue was consecrated on 15 June 1976.[17]

  • Steve Jobs visited India in 1974 with his friend Daniel Kottke to meet the guru Neem Karoli Baba. Although he arrived at the ashram after Baba left their physical body in September 1973, but the trip profoundly influenced Jobs' approach towards simplicity, intuition, and focus. [22]
  • Mark Zuckerberg visited in 2008; he revealed that early in Facebook's development, when the company was facing challenges, Steve Jobs advised him to visit the ashram to reconnect with the mission of his company. [23] The disclosure drew renewed international media attention to Kainchi Dham. [24]
  • In November 2022, Indian cricketer Virat Kohli and his wife actor Anushka Sharma visited Kainchi Dham with their daughter.[25] Their visit received widespread media attention and increased public interest in Kainchi Dham.[26][6]

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ↑ Das, Kristina (9 June 2025). "Kainchi Dham Mela 2025: Know date of foundation day, how to reach Neem Karoli Baba's temple". India TV News. Retrieved 20 September 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 बेलवाल, ललित मोहन (14 June 2025). "कैंची धाम में किस दिन लगेगा भव्य मेला, नीम करोली बाबा के दर से कोई नहीं लौटता है खाली हाथ". Navbharat Times (in Hindi). Retrieved 22 October 2025.
  3. ↑ "CM orders crowd control plan for Kainchi Dham fair as footfall triples in a year". The Times of India. 12 June 2025. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
  4. ↑ Sethi, Narendra (10 June 2025). "Second life lost in four days amid tourist rush in Uttarakhand". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
  5. ↑ "क्यों Kainchi Dham कहलाता है नीब करौली बाबा का आश्रम? जानें इस जगह का इतिहास और महत्व - Why is Neem Karoli Baba Ashram Known as Kainchi Dham Know the History and Significance". Jagran (in Hindi). Retrieved 13 February 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Kuntamalla, Vidheesha; Tenguriya, Deepak (19 September 2026). "Looking for Neem Karoli Baba: How a 20th century guru found a new generation". The Indian Express. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
  7. ↑ Kainchi Dham Nainital district Official website.
  8. ↑ "CM orders crowd control plan for Kainchi Dham fair as footfall triples in a year". The Times of India. 12 June 2025. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
  9. ↑ "कैंची धाम में श्रद्धालुओं की बढ़ती संख्या को देखते हुए समुचित प्रबंधन के मुख्यमंत्री ने दिए निर्देश". Information and Public Relations Department, Government of Uttarakhand. 12 June 2025. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
  10. ↑ "कैंची धाम में श्रद्धालुओं की बढ़ती संख्या को देखते हुए समुचित प्रबंधन के मुख्यमंत्री ने दिए निर्देश". Information and Public Relations Department, Government of Uttarakhand. 12 June 2025. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
  11. ↑ Joshi, Kamlesh (14 February 2026). "कैंची धाम: पिछले छह महीने में पहुंचे 19 लाख दर्शनार्थी". Amar Ujala. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
  12. ↑ "Kainchi Dham Mela 2024: कौन हैं नीम करोली बाबा? जिनकी देश-विदेश तक फैली है ख्याति - Kainchi Dham Mela 2024 date neem karoli baba biography in hindi". Jagran (in Hindi). Retrieved 25 June 2025.
  13. ↑ "कैंची धाम के लिए एक और बाईपास की तैयारी, सुरंग भी बनेगी; गुलाबघाटी से रानीबाग तक की सड़क टू-लेन का काम भी जल्द होगा - Nainital News Bypass Construction to Ease Traffic at Kainchi Dham". Jagran (in Hindi). Retrieved 25 June 2025.
  14. ↑ PTI (24 June 2025). "Uttarakhand Landslide: Search for two missing resumes after slide hits Yamunotri trek route". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
  15. ↑ "नीम करोली कैंची धाम जाने के लिए यह है सबसे बेस्ट रास्ता, जाम की कोई टेंशन नहीं, मिलेगा वादियों का नजारा भी". Zee News Hindi (in Hindi). Retrieved 29 June 2025.
  16. ↑ Singh, Govind (5 June 2025). "Kainchi Dham Mela 2025: तैयारियां शुरू, 15 जून को उमड़ेगी भीड़; जाम से बचने को बनाया फुलप्रूफ प्‍लान". Jagran (in Hindi). Retrieved 22 October 2025.
  17. 1 2 3 Langmuur, Katya (2011). Becoming the Breath of Ram: The Life and Teachings of Neem Karoli Baba (PhD thesis). University of Kent. p. 165. doi:10.22024/UniKent/01.02.86439.
  18. 1 2 Haldar, Soumava (19 September 2026). "Faith Multiplier". Open. Retrieved 20 September 2026.
  19. 1 2 नौटियाल, पवन (15 June 2026). "कैंची धाम स्थापना दिवस पर उमड़ा आस्था का सैलाब, 1 घंटे में 10000 भक्तों ने किए दर्शन, क्या हैं खास इंतजाम". Navbharat Times (in Hindi). Retrieved 20 September 2026.
  20. ↑ Explained Desk (24 December 2019). "Explained: Who was Baba Ram Dass, pioneer of US psychedelic movement?". The Indian Express. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
  21. ↑ "कैंची धाम में स्थापना दिवस की धूम, बाबा नीम करौली के दर्शन को पहुंच सकते हैं 2 लाख श्रद्धालु". Aaj Tak. 14 June 2023. Retrieved 20 September 2026.
  22. ↑ "How Neem Karoli baba inspired tech giants". Times of India. Retrieved 23 April 2026.
  23. ↑ "How Neem Karoli baba inspired tech giants". Times of India. Retrieved 23 April 2026.
  24. ↑ Gowen, Annie (1 November 2015). "America's Tech Titans Explore Spiritual Side at Indian Temple". NDTV. The Washington Post. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
  25. ↑ Shukla, Skand (17 November 2022). "बेटी के साथ कैंची धाम पहुंचे विराट और अनुष्का, बाबा को दंडवत प्रणाम कर हनुमान चालीसा का किया पाठ". Dainik Jagran. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
  26. ↑ Awasthi, Puja (3 December 2023). "Uttarakhand: A totem of hope or a tomb of recklessness?". The Week. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
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